I came home for my spring break to a pile of boxes waiting to be opened, and one of them was a new Influenster VoxBox to be opened and reviewed!

If you don't know, Influenster is a FREE website that you sign up for to review products, and when you connect your social media accounts you can qualify for a Vox Box aka FREE products sent to you to give your 100% honest, unbiased opinion about!

I've recieved a few VoxBoxes, but this one is my favorite yet!

The #BalanceVoxBox included a Clif Nut Butter Filled Bar (Chocolate Peanut Butter - spoiler: YUM!), Herbaland Protein Gummies, a coupon for a free product from Vea Snacks, and my FAVORITE part - three new teas from DavidsTea's wellness collection!

Here's my 100% unbiased, true, honest review:

Clif Nut Filled Bar:

I've been a fan of Clif bars for about a year now. I've tried a ton of different kinds but ate them so often as a pre or post workout snack that I got kind of sick of them. I had seen the new Nut Butter filled at the grocery store, but had not been interested enough to purchase. OH MY GOSH this was amazing. I grabbed my VoxBox from home just before I headed out on a three hour drive, and this was a lifesaver. It was the perfect amount of sweetness and peanut butter goodness, and I could see this being a great alternative when I'm craving peanut butter cups! 10/10 would repurchase, but only if I have a safe to lock these up in so I don't eat all of them in a day.

I am a HUGE gummy candy lover, so I was super excited to try these....and I left a little disappointed. They were pretty hard to chew, and had a very grainy texture (from the pea proteins I assume). I'll stick to controlling my gummy candy habits, but if you need to reduce your sugar, these will work when a craving hits - and will keep you full with all of that protein and fiber!

DavidsTea Wellness Sachets

Anyone who knows me knows about my love affair with DavidsTea. It's been a long journey since the first time i ventured into a store in Toronto in 2013 (?) and my tea collection has grown exponentially since then!

One of my new favorite teas has to be Lemon Cayenne Cleanse. It's a white tea, so it's recommended to let the water sit for a few minutes before steeping the tea and only for a couple of minutes. It's got a strong lemon scent and taste (....my friends liken it to floor cleaner, but I love it!). I did like Turmeric Glow, but it's not my favorite, the turmeric makes the tea a strange color and it kind of weirds me out! I have tried The Detox before, and it is NOT a tea for me, but I'll stick it into my stash and give it to someone who will love it!

(I did get a coupon for a free Vea snack, and am still looking for somewhere to purchase! Let me know if you'd like me to review them if/when I find it!)

I hope this review is helpful, interesting, entertaining, etc for you! ❤️

love + pixie dust,

sarah

(PSA: I received these product for free to review from Influenster. All opinions are my own!)

{Hello Friends! It has been a while, so sorry about that! A series of unfortunate events (and a revelation of sorts) brought the creative out of me today! I missed writing a lot and am glad to be semi-back! Enjoy and make sure to comment below!}

"I was made for this,

I live for this,

God has a reason for my life"

This was our theme for Vacation Bible School this year: Maker Fun Factory - Created by God, Built for a Purpose.

I sang this along with over a hundred kids and volunteers this week.

I poured out my heart and soul telling kids that they had a purpose. That they were created by a God who knows them intimately, is for them, is always with them, and who loves them unconditionally.

But what happens when "this" - our purpose, our reason that we think we're on earth - doesn't seem to be happening? What happens when what we we think we were made to do doesn't come true?

I've struggled with this so much, and thankfully, VBS always seems to know what my heart needs to hear.

I remember back in my high school french class we were given an assignment to create a futuristic invention. My group for some reason created a very interesting (to say the least) object. If I remember correctly, it was a 4 inch tube shape, orange, with some little doodads, a sponge on one end, and some metallic detailing.

(I searched high and low trying to find a picture but the internet has failed me...trust me, it was a real treat)

Any guesses on what it was created for?

I remember people asking us what we had made. What was this odd creation's purpose? Some made guesses, they looked it over before class to try and gain some insight before they guessed.

But only the people in our group truly knew the answer. And we all felt a sense of pride and satisfaction when no one could figure out what our gizmo was. Only the creators knew what the creation was truly made for.

Only the inventor knows the purpose of his invention.

The thing we oftentimes get wrong about finding our purpose in life is that we'll never truly know what our purpose is until it happens. The creation doesn't know what the creator has imagined, planned, and hoped for them.

If I believe I am created by a loving, caring God, I can say that I am created for a reason.

If I am created for a reason, I know that I have a purpose.

The biggest lie I have ever believed about purpose is that it's what you do. Your purpose is not dictated by your profession, vocation, or career. It's not who you marry, or how many kids you can or cannot have.

My purpose is to follow my creator. To figure it out along the way by listening to His voice. My purpose won't be fulfilled when I land a full time job in ministry. It won't be fulfilled when I'm married, or when I've seen "X" number of students give their hearts to God. It won't be when I'm successful, in fact, in my experience, following God often means you sacrifice what is "success" in the eyes of the world.

My purpose will be fulfilled when I meet my creator face to face. When He looks at me and says "well done". When I arrive at eternity's shore. When I can say that I fiercely and loyally served my creator and God and spread the word of Him to anyone who would listen.

“The world is a book and those who do not travel read only one page.” – St. Augustine

Travel is (IMO) one of the most important and influential decisions that anyone can make. Whether you're 10 or 100, travel broadens your horizons, introduces you to new people and experiences, and just makes you happy (and all of your friends jealous).

Travel is GREAT, but planning the perfect get-away can be stressful, especially on a budget. And that keeps a lot of people from travelling (cue to me wistfully looking at flights I can't afford!)

Here are my top 5 tips for stress free travel:

1) Plan.

Planning can make or break a trip. I recommend at least a month for short trips, 6+ months for longer, international trips. Google, Pinterest, and search all your heart desires for accommodations, flights, transportation, attractions, etc. Find maps of the subway system, and make a schedule. If you know what you'll be doing every day and how to get there, you'll spend more time actually enjoying your vacation and less time stressing out about being lost in an unfamiliar city. You can be like the crazies (aka me) and plan every waking minute, or just get a feel for the city and be more spontaneous during your trip.

2) Save.

This kind of goes along with planning. But, if you're on a budget (or just plain thrifty), you're going to want to have an amazing vacation, while spending as little as possible. Putting yourself on a "payment plan" by putting away a part of your pay every week, or committing to not spending $5 on coffee every day, every penny will add up! Set up an automatic transfer through your bank and you probably won't even notice the money you're putting away.

Having the money saved in advance prevents that terrible post-vacation credit card bill guilt, and allows you to not stress about the money that you're investing into travel! This also puts you ahead of the game to start planning your next trip!

3) Make Copies.

Your passports, itinerary, flight details, hotel names and addresses, who you're travelling with, contact numbers. Anything and everything you could possibly need, print it off, screenshot it on your phone, email it to yourself (cell phones die people!), and leave a copy of everything with your family or a trusted friend. If anything goes wrong, you'll want to have a copy somewhere secure. Backups = less stress.

4) Consider Group travel.

Travelling in a group is a) cheaper b) FUN!

Grab a few friends, split a hotel room, and travel together! Or better yet, travel with a group of strangers through a tour company! Not only is there strength (and less stress) in numbers, it generally makes it cheaper to share travel costs than to go at it alone. I'm actually travelling to Europe next year with EF college break (not spons.) and instead of worrying about flights, hotels, etc, we're spending our time thinking about what we'll eat, see, and buy!

5) Take care of your home.

While you're off travelling the world and making memories to last a lifetime, the last thing you want to worry about is your home. My friends at SimpiSafe sent me thisawesome checklist to make sure everything (and everyone!) in your home is safe while you're away! For more info on them and their system you can visit them here and learn more about keeping your home safe while traveling!

What are your favorite tips for a worry-free trip? Where is your next adventure taking you? Let me know!

The thing about yard sales, thrifting, or shopping secondhand is you never know what you're going to get.

Some weeks, you haul home armloads of stuff. Others, only one item.

This week, I visited multiple sales and nothing.

I actually only ended up with ONE item. But it was a good one!

I scored this Kodak Colorburst 100 instant camera for ONE DOLLAR! I honestly was prepared to pay $5-$10 for it, but when the guy told me he only wanted a dollar, I was over the moon! I have no idea if it works, but it's still a great addition to my collection! A quick look on eBay tells me it's not worth too much, but it is still one of my favorite finds of the season so far!

This week we started getting ready for our own yard sale coming up...which means we went through everything in our house - from my school things, old movies, toys, and games to my grandmother's old recipe books.'

I was in vintage-lovers heaven when I hauled out this tin full of recipes. Some dated back to the 1950s and I was shaking just holding them. So much love and history soaked up in some pieces of paper.

Our family isn't really into sentimental keepsakes, but since my grandmother moved in with us, I've gotten to know a lot about her life and it is so wonderful. If there's one thing I've learned after travelling and being away from home over 5 years, it's that family is important and one day they'll be gone - so cherish it while you can!

There's been a lot going on on my blog, and I'm going to attempt to narrow down my post topics...but it has proven to be hard as my interests tend to fluctuate and change every few months.

BUT yard sale season is here! There aren't any useful thrift or antique shops in my town, so when the snow melts and yard sales start up again, I get excited!

Every Thursday I'll be posting about my thrifting adventures the previous weekend!

This past Friday there was a Jumble Sale at a local church.

Now, yard sales are good, but CHURCH yard sales are better. Prices are always great, there's a huse assortment of goods, and you really never know what you're going to find! I think I got some good deals and found some stuff I'm really happy with!

Here's what I found!!

First of all: This tea set! I actually got this the week BEFORE the church sale. There was a small moving sale so obviously I hit it up!

The lady who sold this to me said it had been her grandmothers, was passed down to her mother, and then to her! Entire set cost me $5!

(Note: I was going to include the prices for the items I got at the church sale, but there wasn't really any markings of what most of the things were priced at. However, I do know my entire haul cost me $7. )

1) I have a confession to make. I am obsessed with vintage kitchenware. Do I live on my own? Do I have a kitchen where I can actually use this stuff? Nope. Do I obsessively hoard it anyway? Of course.

I've been eating and drinking a lot of lemon-infused things lately so I had to have this Lemon themed pitcher! It is so cute! I'm going to use it for iced tea this summer!

I also got two casserole dishes, and a set of two Coca-Cola glasses!

2) On the list of "things sarah will not let pass at yard sales" are cameras. I usually head for more vintage-y styles, but for some reason these stood out to me. And, lets face it, these two Pentax cameras are vintage to some children!

3) A few things were set at a price, so I do know that books were .25 cents for soft cover and .50 cents for hardcover.

I picked up four books:

Harry Potter and the Philosophers Stone (one can never have too many copies of Harry Potter)

In the Unlikely Event by Judy Blume

The Collected Works fo CS Lewis

Lord of the Flies (my current copy is very tattered!)

Total: $1.50

3) I've never actually seen Pete's Dragon, and there's something about things that look worn and well loved at sales that make me want to buy them. I also don't own Bambi in any format, so I had to have that as well.

Total: $1.00 (.50 each)

4) The crowning jewel of my haul! I stalked the one box of records until the person looking at them left. I think he felt my death stares on his back ;) Rummaged through old gospel and country albums and came across this! Mickey Mouse Disco! I'm always on the hunt for anything Disney, and Disney records is something I really want to collect more of.

(I think these were .25 cents?

OH! I almost forgot! I may not have gotten him at a yard sale, but he is my favorite purchase of 2016! Meet my rescue dog, Flynn (yes, as in Flynn Rider from Tangled!) He's a year old, we don't know what breed he is, but he is a huge snuggle bug with lots of energy and love to give!

So a little while ago, I learned that companies will give you free things. Being a thrifty (never "cheap") person, you know I am all over that.

Thankfully there's a nifty little website called influenster that partners up people wanting to try new products (but aren't trying to break the bank) and companies that want honest reviews of their product.

When I first signed up, I realized it was based on your social media influence (hence the name influencster) and I didn't really think I had a chance of getting a VoxBox full of goodies.

But a little while later, I got an email..and I was IN! A few days later I got a box full of John Frieda products to review!

I got the "Visibly Deeper" system for Brunettes. This is a shampoo/conditioner/deep conditioning treatment. It's been over 2 years since I last colored my hair and I've been embracing my natural color for the first time since the seventh grade.

So far I've been really enjoying the results! There aren't any drastic changes in my hair color, but there is definitely a deepening in the color.

You can almost see a difference, but the way my hair feels after using the products isn't really worth it. My hair feels weighed down and doesn't feel clean. I will probably keep using it until I run out, but in between my regular shampoo as a "boost" for my color than using it on a regular basis.

the blogger

Welcome to my blog! I'm Sarah, a twenty-something Canadian. Self-proclaimed disnerd, Tyndale Biblical Studies graduate, and wannabe world traveller. I was a part of Disney's Cultural Exchange program Summer 2015 and I worked Magic Kingdom West Custodial! give me some love on insta and twitter @sarahe_burton